Toe-holding device for safety ski binding

ABSTRACT

A toe-holding device for a safety ski binding comprising a toeholder body laterally rotatably supported on a stationary member and having an aperture, the body being urgedly locked, at one point, to the stationary member with a given biasing force. A pair of vertical shafts is extended through the aperture so that they can contact with the body, and is positioned symmetrically relative to the urgedly locked point of the body. The aperture has a space enough to permit the body to be rotated about the pair of shafts respectively. In a normal ski-operative condition, the body is prevented from its rotation by the contact of the shafts with the body and the biasing force acting on said one point of the body. When a force exceeding the given biasing force is applied to the body to tend to rotate it, the body is allowed to rotate in either lateral direction about either of the shafts.

United States Patent [191 Nagasaki 1 Jan. 15, 1974 TOE-HOLDING DEVICE FOR SAFETY SKI BINDING [75] Inventor: Yoichi Nagasaki, Hamamatsu, Japan [73] Assignee: Nippon Gakki Seizo Kabushiki Kaisha, Hamamatsu-shi, Japan [22] Filed: May 18, 1972 [21] Appl. No.: 254,366

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data July 19, 1971 Japan 46/63651 [52] US. Cl 280/1 1.35 T [51] Int. Cl A63c 9/00 [58] Field of Search 280/11.35 T

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,288,476 11/1966 Ramillon 280/11'35 T 3,445,123 5/1969 Reuge 280/11.35 T 3,027,173 3/1962 Beyl 280/11.35 T

Brim? @Ei'iflPRQlQF 9 2; Attorney-Lawrence Lerner, David, Littenberg & Samuel [57] ABSTRACT A toe-holding device for a safety ski binding comprising a toe-holder body laterally rotatably supported on a stationary member and having an aperture, the body being urgedly locked, at one point, to the stationary member with a given biasing force. A pair of vertical shafts is extended through the aperture so that they can contact with the body, and is positioned symmetrically relative to the urgedly locked point of the body. The aperture has a space enough to permit the body to be rotated about the pair of shafts respectively.

In a normal ski-operative condition, the body is prevented from its rotation by the contact of the shafts with the body and the biasing force acting on said one point of the body. When a force exceeding the given biasing force is applied to the body to tend to rotate it, the body is allowed to rotate in either lateral direction about either of the shafts.

10 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures TOE-HOLDING DEVICE FOR SAFETY SKI BINDING BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a toe-holding device for a safety ski binding of the type in which the toe por' tion of a ski boot can be simply clamped by a skier.

Further, the invention relates to a toe-holding device for a safety ski binding having a simple and dependable construction combining a novel escapement mechanism, in which the toe portion of a boot of a skier can be released without fail in response to an abnormal outer force applied thereto in the event of a fall of a skier.

In the conventional type ski binding, the toe ofa boot is to be engaged with it by somewhat troublesome operation for the skier, and the releasing mechanism is rather complicated and unreliable. Therefore, in recent years, a demand is increasing for a ski binding of the type in which the boots of a skier can be engaged or released easily by a simple operation. However, in such ordinary device, an easy operation with regard to the safety toe-holding mechanism thereof cannot be expected.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to propose a novel toe-holding device for a safety ski binding in which the operation to clamp the toe of aski boot can be carried out simply and dependably.

Another object of the invention is to propose a toeholding device in which the boot of a skier can be released without fail in response to an abnormal outer force applied thereto in the event such as a fall of the skier.

Pursuant to the above-mentioned objects of the present invention. the toe-holding device for a safety ski binding of the invention comprises: a stationary memher; a toe-holder body laterally rotatably supported on the stationary member, the body having at least one aperture; fixing means urgedly locking the body to the stationary member under a given biasing force; and a pair of vertical shafts extending through the aperture and positioned symmetrically with each other relative to the fixing means, the shafts being in contact with the body, the aperture having an enough space to permit the body to the rotated about the pair of shafts respectively, whereby the body is prevented from its rotation by the contact of the shafts with the body and by the urged locking of the body to the stationary member, and when a force exceeding and acting against the given biasing force is applied to the body, the body is allowed to rotate in either lateral direction about either of the shafts.

These and other features of the present invention will become more fully apparent from the following detailed description of the embodiment with reference to the accompnaying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a plan view of a toe-holding device for a safety ski binding according to the invention;

FIG. 2 is a side view of the device as shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a back view of the device as shown in FIG. 1; and

FIGS. 4a and 4b are schematic plan view illustrating the rotating state of the toe holder of said device.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Now referring to the drawings, the structure of the toe-holding device of the invention will be explained.

The numeral 1 denotes generally a toe clamp for holding the toe portion of a ski boot A, the clamp 1 being formed into a horizontal plain segment having symmetrical right and left blades 2, 2 and projecting pawls 3, 3 for clamping the toe portion of a ski boot. The toe clamp l is fitted to a vertical shaft 7 between upper and lower backward extentions S, 6 both extended toward the ski boot A from a toe holder body 4 of the toe-holding device. The toe clamp 1 has a vertical slot la innerthreaded for engaging with the outerthread 7a of the vertical shaft 7 for adjusting the vertical position of the blades 2, 2' according to the thickness of the sole of a ski boot A. Rotating the vertical shaft 7 permits the clamp l to be threadedly guided along the shaft 7 up and down. Thus the toe portion of a ski boot A, particularly the sole portion of the boot, can be clamped by said toe clamp l securedly. Almost at the center of the toe holder body 4, a recess 8 of trapezoidal shape is bored and an aperture 9 is further hollowed out vertically downward from the bottom of the recess 8, the aperture being narrower in area than the recess 8 and formed into a rounded equilateral triangular shape having three equal-length arc sides, the adjacent sides forming a sharply rounded recess therebetween. The undermentioned rollers of shafts are guidable along the lateral surface of the aperture 9, engaging therewith. surface to surface, enabling the rotating motion of the toe holder body 4 in either of the clockwise and counterclockwise directions due to the rotating force applied thereto. Two parallel shafts 12, 13 vertically extended and fitted with rotatable rollers 14, 15 thereabout are fixedly mounted on a stationary plate 11 and are extended through the aperture 9. The

shafts 12 and 13 are arranged side by side in a lateral direction of the toe-holding device. The rollers 14 and 15 are situated in the aperture 9 and are in contact'with the inner side wall of the body 4 defining the aperture 9. The aperture 9 is covered with a cover plate 10 having a shape substantially conforming to the trapezoidal shape of the recess 8 but somewhat narrower than the latter, the cover plate 10 being seated in the recess 8, that is, on the stepped portion between the recess 8 and aperture 9. The shafts l2 and 13 pierce the cover plate 10, with the upper end portions thereof fitted with fixing nuts 16, 16 preventing the cover plate 10 from being removed from the shafts l2 and 13. Thus the coupling between the toe holder body 4 and the stationary plate 4 is secured, permitting the body 4 to rotate about either of the shafts l2 and 13.

At the forward end portion on the center line of the toe holder body 4 is perforated a vertical through hole 17 having an inner-threaded upper section. The hole 17 is formed in such a position of the body 4 that the above-mentioned shafts l2 and 13 are arranged symmetrically with each other relative to the hole 17. An adjusting screw 21 is inserted into the upper section of the hole 17 by threadedly engaging therewith. Intothe hole 17 are housed a coiled compression spring 19 and a steel ball 18 depressed downward by the coiled spring 19, a part of the steel ball 18 being protruded from the under surface of the toe holder body 4 and inserted into recessed seat 20 provided to the stationary plate 11. The ball 18 is always pressed into the seat 20 under the biasing force of the coiled spring 19, and thus the toe holder body 4 is urgedly locked to the stationary plate 11. The biasing force of the coiled spring 19 can be adjusted by screwing the screw 21 engaged with the inner thread of the vertical hole 17. The numeral 22 denotes a buffer member arranged inside of the toe clamp 1. Further, the shape of the aperture 9 may be modified to any rounded equilateral polygonal shape having guide surfaces to slide the parallel shafts 12, 13.

Now, the function of the toe-holding device of the present invention having the above-mentioned structure will be explained in the following.

ln the first place, the stationary plate 11 is fixed to a ski body by screws insertable through holes 23, 23.

When the device is to be used as a safety ski binding, the sole of the toe portion of the ski boot A is inserted between the ski body and the blades 2, 2'. At that time, the vertical position of the blades 2, 2' is properly adjusted by rotating the shaft 7. The top end of the ski boot is pressed against the projecting pawls 3, 3.

In a normal ski-operative condition, the toe holder body 4 is immovably held on the stationary plate 11, as the rollers 14 and 15 of the shafts l2 and 13 are snugly fitted in the sharply rounded recessed formed in the aperture 9 as shown in FIG. 1, and as the ball 18 is urged by the spring 19 into the recessed seat 20, locking the body 4 to the stationary plate 11.

However, when an accident such as a tumbling or a bumping of a skier is caused to happen in skiing, a severe and abnormal force will be given to the top of the ski boot, and consequently the toe of the ski boot is forced to rotate either clockwise or counterclockwise, whereby the either one of the blades 2, 2 of the toe clamp l is pushed transversely or obliquely upward. At the same time, the toe clamp 1 is moved in the direction of the applied force, and accordingly the toe holder body 4 begins to rotate eccentrically about the either one of the parallel shafts l2 and 13. At that moment, the toe holder body 4 resists to be held in the normal position against some limited force due to the locking action of the steel ball 18 inserted into the seat 20 of the stationary plate 11 through the biasing force of the coiled spring 19. However, when the exess force over the biasing force of the coiled spring 19 is applied to the toe holder body 4, the steel ball 18 is removed from the seat 20, allowing the locking to be released, and the toe holder body 4 to be rotated. Then, the toe holder body 4 can be rotated eccentrically about the either one of the parallel shafts 12, 13, with the rotational movement thereof restricted by the rollers 14 and 15 engaged with the inside surface of the aperture 9 formed inside of said toe holder body 4. This rotational movement is guided by the relative movement between the surface of the rollers 14 and 15 and the contacting surface of the aperture 9.

Now referring to FIGS, 4a and 4b, the rotating state of the toe holder body 4 and the toe clamp 1 will be illustrated.

When the toe clamp 1 is forced to move to the right or to the left with respect to the center line 0-0, either one of the shafts l2, l3 acts as an axis about which the body 4 can be rotated, and the other of the shafts 12, 13 escapes from one of the sharply rounded recesses, shifting toward the adjacent one of the sharply rounded recesses, with the roller on said other shaft rotating along the circular side of the aperture 9 interposed between said two sharply rounded recesses. Thus the rotation is smoothly guided by the rollers and the inner side surface of the body 4 defining aperture 9, and the toe clamp 1 is restricted its further rotation by the contact of the rollers with the inner side surface.

As is explained in the above, the safety mechanism of the toe-holding device of the present invention is such that, the toe portion ofa ski boot is being held securely in an normal skiing operation, whereas when an accident such as a tumbling or a bumping is caused to happen, giving a severe and extraordinary force to the toe of the ski boot, then the toe holder, holding the toe of the ski boot, is caused to rotate clockwise or counterclockwise, and thereby the toe of the ski boot is easily released from the ski; therefore the dangers such as the sprain and fracture of the ankle can be prevented. Further, the operation of the toe-holding device of the present invention is very easy and dependable. Thus, the present invention can provide very safe and dependable toe-holding device for safety ski bindings.

Although the above-mentioned embodiment comprises a toe holder body having one aperture 9 through which the shafts 12 and 13 are extended, there may be provided two separate apertures through which the shafts can be inserted respectively, instead of the aperture 9 of the above-mentioned embodiment.

What is claimed is:

1. A toe-holding device for a safety binding comprising: a stationary member; a toe holder body laterally rotatably supported on the stationary member, said body having an aperture of polygonal shape including at least three rounded inwardly concave sides which cooperate to form at least two rounded corners; fixing means positioned on a substantially longitudinal center line of said body for urgedly locking said body to the stationary member under a given biasing force; and a pair of vertical shafts fixedly mounted to said stationary member and extending through the aperture and positioned symmetrically with each other relative to the fixing means, said shafts being in contact with said body, said aperture having enough space to permit said body to be rotated about said pair of shafts respectively, whereby said body is prevented from its rotation by the contact of the shafts with said body and by the urged locking of the body to the stationary member, and when a force exceeding and acting against said given biasing force is applied to the body, the body is allowed to rotate in either lateral direction about either of said shafts, said vertical shafts being in contact with said rounded corners of said aperture when said body is in its operative toe-holding position and said body being capable of turning about one of said shafts with such shaft remaining in contact with its respective rounded corner, while the other shaft moves into contact with a rounded side opposed to said rounded corner.

2. A toe-holding device as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a cover plate mounted on said toe holder body and bridged over said aperture, said shafts being connected to said cover plate.

3. A toe-holding device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said aperture is defined by three equal-length arc inner side walls of said body, the adjacent ones of said walls continuing into each other and forming a sharply rounded recess therebetween.

4. A toe-holding device as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a pair of rollers each rotatable about each of said shafts, said shafts being in contact with the body through said rollers.

5. A toe-holding device as claimed in claim 3, further comprising a pair of rollers each rotatable about each of said shafts, said shafts being in contact with the inner side walls of said body through said rollers.

6. A toe-holding device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said toe holder body has a hole opening toward said stationary member has a recessed seat facing said hole of said body, and said fixing means comprises a compression spring housed in said hole and a ball pressed into said seat of said stationary member by said spring under the binasing force of said spring.

7. A toe-holding device as claimed in claim 6, wherein said fixing means further comprises an adjustable screw screwed into that end of said hole opposite to the end facing the seat of said stationary member,

said screw abutting against said spring, the turning of said screw changing the compressed state of said spring.

8. A toe-holding device as clamined in claim 2, wherein said body has an opening continuing from said aperture and being wider in area than said aperture, said cover plate being situated in said opening.

9. A toe-holding device as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a pair of extensions projecting from said toe holder body and being vertically spaced apart from each other, an outer threaded rotatable shaft bridging said pair of extensions, and an inner threaded toe clamping member engaged with said outer threaded shaft, the rotation of said outer threaded rotatable shaft permitting the toe clamping member to be moved along said outer threaded rotatable shaft.

10. A toe-holding device as claimed in claim 9, wherein said toe clamping member is provided with a pair of pawls engaging with the toe of a ski boot. 

1. A toe-holding device for a safety binding comprising: a stationary member; a toe holder body laterally rotatably supported on the stationary member, said body having an aperture of polygonal shape including at least three rounded inwardly concave sides which cooperate to form at least two rounded corners; fixing means positioned on a substantially longitudinal center line of said body for urgedly locking said body to the stationary member under a given biasing force; and a pair of vertical shafts fixedly mounted to said stationary member and extending through the aperture and positioned symmetrically with each other relative to the fixing means, said shafts being in contact with said body, said aperture having enough space to permit said body to be rotated about said pair of shafts respectively, whereby said body is prevented from its rotation by the contact of the shafts with said body and by the urged locking of the body to the stationary member, and when a force exceeding and acting against said given biasing force is applied to the body, the body is allowed to rotate in either lateral direction about either of said shafts, said vertical shafts being in contact with said rounded corners of said aperture when said body is in its operative toe-holding position and said body being capable of turning about one of said shafts with such shaft remaining in contact with its respective rounded corner, while the other shaft moves into contact with a rounded side opposed to said rounded corner.
 2. A toe-holding device as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a cover plate mounted on said toe holder body and bridged over said aperture, said shafts being connected to said cover plate.
 3. A toe-holding device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said aperture is defined by three equal-length arc inner side walls of said body, the adjacent ones of said walls continuing into each other and forming a sharply rounded recess therebetween.
 4. A toe-holding device as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a pair of rollers each rotatable about each of said shafts, said shafts being in contact with the body through said rollers.
 5. A toe-holding device as claimed in claim 3, further comprising a pair of rollers each rotatable about each of said shafts, said shafts being in contact with the inner side walls of said body through said rollers.
 6. A toe-holding device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said toe holder body has a hole opening toward said stationary member has a recessed seat facing said hole of said body, and said fixing means comprises a compression spring housed in said hole and a ball pressed into said seat of said stationary member by said spring under the binasing force of said spring.
 7. A toe-holding device as claimed in claim 6, wherein said fixing means further comprises an adjustable screw screwed into that end of said hole opposite to the end facing the seat of said stationary member, said screw abutting against said Spring, the turning of said screw changing the compressed state of said spring.
 8. A toe-holding device as clamined in claim 2, wherein said body has an opening continuing from said aperture and being wider in area than said aperture, said cover plate being situated in said opening.
 9. A toe-holding device as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a pair of extensions projecting from said toe holder body and being vertically spaced apart from each other, an outer threaded rotatable shaft bridging said pair of extensions, and an inner threaded toe clamping member engaged with said outer threaded shaft, the rotation of said outer threaded rotatable shaft permitting the toe clamping member to be moved along said outer threaded rotatable shaft.
 10. A toe-holding device as claimed in claim 9, wherein said toe clamping member is provided with a pair of pawls engaging with the toe of a ski boot. 